Indian-born, San Jose-based AKI KUMAR, aka “THE ONLY
BOMBAY BLUES MAN,” left his home in Mumbai with
the intention of working as a software engineer in
Silicon Valley. Then he discovered the BLUES, and
his life dramatically changed. Singing and playing
harmonica, he steeped himself in the music and
became a fixture in BLUES clubs throughout Northern
California,where he developed an unique, audacious blend
of Chicago-style BLUES which then led to playing
retro BOLLYWOOD pop mixed with the BLUES.When he
began performing, KUMAR initially attempted to downplay
his ethnicity and perform straight, Chicago-style BLUES.
“I wanted to make a statement that I was a
traditional BLUES man, so I wanted to be playing
BLUES and have nobody even wonder where I came
from.” His attitude soon changed, and with
his LITTLE VILLAGE FOUNDATION debut, _AKI GOES TO
BOLLYWOOD_, he began integrating elements of Indian
music into his musical and visual presentation, making
for a multi-cultural mash-up that sounds like no one
else, yet never loses touch with its BLUES
foundation. That unique blend of East and West
reaches a new creative plateau on Aki’s second
Little Village Foundation album, _HINDI MAN BLUES_,
which boasts Aki’s most ambitious cross-cultural
fusion to date, and features liner notes by veteran
BLUES great CHARLIE MUSSELWHITE.
“My first album was really about my identity,” the
artist states. “Now I feel it is time to be
more direct about what’s happening out there in
the world. The BLUES scene is my home, and the
scene can be pretty conservative, but I want people
to know where I stand. There’s a good amount of
focus on BOLLYWOOD classics on the new album, and
I even throw in a song about PRESIDENT TRUMP
called ‘All Bark No Bite.’ The production and
arrangements are tighter this time around. ‘Yoh
Surmayi Shaam’ has lyrics that my mom wrote and
sings, she turned 75 this year and it’s a really
nice way to represent her musical contribution to my
life. We also do a version of HERBIE HANCOCK’s
‘Watermelon Man.’
”KUMAR’s visionary stylistic mix has already won him
widespread attention. In addition to the local BLUES
venues, where he’s built an enthusiastic audience,
he’s performed at the prestigious HARDLY STRICTLY
BLUEGRASS FESTIVAL, been featured on PRI “THE
WORLD,” and has toured in Russia and Scandinavia.
Now, after spending more than a decade developing
his sound with the help of some of the Bay
Area’s finest blues players, Aki Kumar continues to
take his love for the blues to new and fascinating
place.
“In a musical sense, this album is the direction
that my career is heading towards. I’m never going
to be a straightahead blues artist. I worked really
hard to establish some blues credibility, and now
I’m seeing that blues fans are really accepting of
my new direction. It’s a pretty interesting
adventure.”
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03/11/2018 Last update